With more new choices, there's a vaccine for almost everyone

Dr. Greg Poland is expecting a lot of questions--and confusion--from his patients this flu season. For the first time, U.S. health officials will distribute six influenza vaccines, up from four last year. "Instead of the one-size-fits-all approach, we are moving to vaccines ... for individual patients," says Poland, director of the Mayo Clinic Vaccine Research Group.

The goal is to get more than the usual 40% of the U.S. population immunized by adding shots made specifically for those who have an allergy to eggs (previously, all flu vaccines contained egg protein), among other conditions. And a new shot and nasal spray...